


Life Finds A Way

by yellowteapots



Category: Jurassic Park (Movies), The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dinosaurs, Alternate Universe - Movie Fusion, F/M, Minor Character Death, POV Multiple
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-02
Updated: 2015-09-10
Packaged: 2018-04-02 12:55:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4060813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yellowteapots/pseuds/yellowteapots
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the mysterious benefactor of their dig asks Dr Griffin and Dr Blake to vouch for his new biological preserve, they agree on the proviso that he fund their research for another three years. It's not until they reach the island that the true nature of Jaha's park comes to light. Assured that the facility is safe, the team agree to go on a tour around the park. Originally thrilled by the prospect of a prehistoric safari park, Clarke and Bellamy soon realize that the park is not suitable for public consumption.</p><p>Otherwise known as the Jurassic Park AU nobody asked for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A six foot turkey

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little idea that I had in the run up to Jurassic World. Hope you enjoy it.

Clarke strolls out of the canteen, flannel shirt tied around her waist and hair haphazardly strewn into a bun underneath her hat. She takes a sip of her water bottle before clipping it back onto her belt before making her way across the camp towards the main excavation sight.

 

She's been heading up the dig here in the Montana bad lands for the past four years, the crumbling limestone of her surroundings feeling more like home than her apartment back in Virginia ever does, and they're finally onto something that could take the palaeontological world by storm. For a while it had seemed like they were spending all of their grant money of a fruitless exercise but the moment they had decided to move their dig all their efforts began to come to fruition. Excavations are scattered across the camp now, tents propped here and there to store the fossils and Clarke couldn't be more proud of what they were achieving here.

 

She knows he must be able to hear the crunch of her boots on the gravel but he doesn't look up from where he's carefully sweeping away sand and rock as she trudges to the top of the ridge. Strictly speaking, he wasn't meant to be in this part of the dig, he should have been supervising some of his students on the eastern site, but he'd insisted that he could still be of use since they were down a grad student and he'd already managed to get their volunteers to start helping to process his samples.

 

“You didn't want lunch?” she asks, crouching next to him and handing him an apple.

 

“Thanks.” he smiles, putting his brush to the side and taking a bite.

 

She takes a deep breath. “Can you believe it, four complete skeleton's in such a small area? We're definitely on to something.”

 

“They died together then?”

 

“It looks that way, doesn't it? I mean, they're from the same time horizon and the taphonomy sure suggests that that would be the case. I think this will definitely support our research in to social order among the species.” She leans over to his kit bag and pulls out a cloth so that she can extract the claw he had been excavating.

 

Bellamy leans over, taking in the claw, pride written across his face. He's so close to her that their faces are almost pressed up against each other but if either of them notice they don't say anything or move away.

 

“They hunted as a team, you know. That bone we found yesterday was most probably lunch for these raptors. But what we need to do is work out how they died, what killed them.”

 

Before they have time to come up with any plausible theories, one of Clarkes grad students calls them over to the computer.

 

She sighs and accepts the arm Bellamy extends to her as he helps her up. She smiles at him as he brushes the dust off his knees and absent-mindedly pockets the claw as they made their way to the bottom of the hill, accidentally bumping elbows as they walked side by side.

 

He notices her eyebrows crease as she watches a couple of the grad students arguing over by one of their dig sites.

 

“They're just kids, you know.”

 

“I know.” she huffs. “But would it kill them to have a bit more respect for their environment.”

 

“There's no-one stopping you from hiring your help, well except the money and the grants you get from the University and our investors...”

 

She's about to protest – it's not the kids themselves she takes issue with but the way they conduct themselves around the camp, the fossils here have been undisturbed for millions of years and the last thing she needs is for one of them to break something, or themselves – but they've arrived in front of Jasper’s computer and he's grinning at them both with a goofy smile, goggles pushed up so that they rest on top of his head.

 

A couple of the other students, and Bellamy's younger sister Octavia, are gathered around the table, perched on various surfaces inside the tent. Bellamy wanders over and takes a seat next to his sister but Clarke chooses to stand, hands on hips, next to Jasper to get a closer look at the monitor he's excitedly pointing at.

 

“Come on then Jas, show me what you've got.”

 

Octavia smirks, but if Clarke hears her before Bellamy can shush her then she elects to ignore it.

 

Jasper throws a switch on the machine lying next to the computer – (Clarke thinks it looks a lot like the hoover she has back at her apartment) – and a lead pellet extends from the machine and is driven into the earth with such forces that it makes the ground underneath her feet shake.

 

“How long does this usually take?” Bellamy asks as the monitor buzzes to life, picture slightly fuzzy. “Looks like the generator could be about to give up the ghost again.”

 

Jasper shakes his head. “It should be immediate return, Dr Blake. You shoot the radar into the ground, the bone bounces back....”As he's speaking, yellow contour lines flicker onto the screen in three distinct waves, detailing out a near complete skeleton. “Like I was saying earlier, this new program is absolutely incredible, state of the art! A few more years of development and you won't have to dig any more!”

 

Bellamy looks positively wounded, “Well, where's the fun in that?”

 

The younger man frowns, “It looks a little distorted, but I don't think that's the computer.”

 

Clarke shakes her head, “My guess would be a post-mortem contraction of the posterior neck ligaments.” She turns to Bellamy. “Velociraptor?”

 

“Yes, I think you could be right Princess. Good shape, too. Five, six feet high. I'm guessing nine feet long.'” he stands and makes his way over to the computer, resting his arm on her shoulder as he leans in towards the screen. “ Look at the half-moon shaped bone in the wrist.”

 

Clarke smiles, “No wonder these guys learned to fly, huh? Ironic really that raptor means 'bird of prey'.”

 

Octavia huffs, looking critically at the skeleton. “That doesn't look very scary. More like a six-foot turkey.”

 

It's no secret to anyone in the Montana camp that Octavia Blake does not want to be there. There's no doubt that she loves her brother but the fact that he's dragged her half way across the country and forced her to live in the dusty back and beyond has done absolutely nothing but aid her teenage angst. Her brother largely ignores her behaviour but if the older Blake rubbed Clarke up the wrong way when he arrived, the younger has been a constant thorn in her side seeking to undermine her at every turn.

 

Bellamy looks like he's about to intervene before things escalate, but Clarke shoots him a look and he steps back.

 

She pulls the claw out of her pocket and hands it to the younger girl. “Try to imagine yourself in the Jurassic Period.”

 

Octavia rolls her eyes.

 

“Okay, I’ll put it in terms you might be a little more familiar with. The velociraptor is a pack hunter, kind of like your typical high school mean girls. You get your first glimpse of them in the hallways and you keep hoping that they'll pass you by, humiliate someone else today and leave you alone until tomorrow. And then, when the attack comes – and it will – it's not coming from the front or even from behind like you might expect. It'll come from the side, from two other raptors that you hadn't even seen.”

 

Bellamy smirks, he knows the two women in front of him would get along fantastically well if either of them would swallow their pride but, for now, at least, he's happy to just observe the way they verbally spar much like he had with Clarke before they'd put their differences to the side. They're surprisingly alike in many ways which is probably where the tension comes from, neither really respecting authority.

 

“So it may look like a giant turkey to you but it's not something you'd ever want to underestimate.” The way she ends the sentence makes Bellamy think that she's talking, at least partially, about herself. Plenty of visiting palaeontologists have challenged her leadership in the past but she's proved time and time again that she's not someone who you can write off easily.

 

“Whatever, Clarke, go back to your bones.” She sighs, handing the fossil back.

 

“You know what Octavia, I know you don't want to be here but try to show a little respect.”And with that she picks up her water bottle and walks back across the camp, returning to her where her skeleton is waiting for her. 

 

Bellamy hurries to catch up with her.

 

“I know you don't want to hear it,” he begins as he catches her up. “But she doesn't mean it. She's just angry that she's here and she doesn't like that you and I are friends and she takes it out on you because she doesn't know how else to cope otherwise.”

 

She shrugs, letting him fall into step next to her. “Yeah, I know, you know...kids. I know she's your sister and it's tough for her but –”

 

Bellamy laughs, “My sister, my responsibility. She's still trying to settle in. She's not so bad once you get to know her.”

 

“That's just because you're related.” she grumbles and that's the end of that.

 

They walk the rest of the way in a companionable silence, which given the way they'd acted when they first met was a miracle in itself. Clarke hadn't taken his presence well when he'd first arrived, two years ago, with an arrogant smirk and a disinterested teenager in tow. The last thing she needed was a smart ass palaeontologist getting under her feet but she soon realised that butting heads was getting them nowhere and the toleration that stemmed from that realisation had eventually led to the mutual respect they had shared since.

 

It's only when she squats down and brushes away some soil to get a better look at the skeleton does Bellamy steal her hat. She scowls, telling him that he should act more like highly respected palaeobotanist that he is and less like a toddler.

 

They bicker non-committally until Clarke halts, mid sentence, and tilts her head. At first she thinks the wind is picking up but as the wind begins to grow in strength, dirt and sand filling in everything they've spent the last few weeks digging, she hears a familiar roar of an engine and looks up to see a chopper flying low over the plane.

 

The closer it gets the more it begins to disrupt the site, protective covers flying off the skeletons with the potential to set their research back for months.

 

“Get some canvasses and cover anything that's exposed!” Bellamy yells and a handful of volunteers scramble to cover their sites.

 

By the time the pair reach the helicopter, the rotor blades are still spinning and Clarke marches over like a woman possessed shouting at him to kill the engine or so help her. The man complies almost instantaneously and then points towards the mobile home that's parked across the camp.

 

She wastes absolutely no time in marching over and thrusts the door open. The first thing she notices is a man, bent over, rooting through their fridge with his back to her.

 

Clearing her throat, “What the hell do you think you're doing in here?”

 

The man turns, smile on his face, holding a bottle of champagne out towards her.

 

“Ah hah!” he beams, popping the cork with a flourish.

 

She stares incredulously at the man, holding her – now open – champagne bottle without an invitation and she feels another wave of anger towards this man who is invading his space.

 

“Um, excuse me, but we were saving that!” she frowns.

 

“For today, I guarantee it.”

 

“And who in God's name do you think you are....?” she demands.

 

The man extends his hand, “Thelonius Jaha. And I must say that I am delighted to finally meet you in person Dr Griffin.” 

 

She is struck silent, this is the man that's been funding their dig for years, always anonymous but he routinely sends someone every few months to check on their progress at the site. She shakes his hand, staring dumbly and cursing herself for being so standoffish.

 

“Oh, Mr Jaha? It's a, uh, surprise to see you here.” is all that she can think to say.

 

Jaha simply looks around the trailer approvingly, taking in all of the carefully labelled bones and samples that are spread around her makeshift office. She can tell by the look on his face that he's impressed with their progress and she feels a swell of pride in her stomach because she knows just how much work everyone at the site has put in for them to achieve these sorts of results. “I can see my fifty thousand a year has been well spent.”

 

The door bursts open for a second time and Bellamy storms in, just as pissed off as Clarke had been moments before. He looks flustered and there's dirt smeared across his cheeks and Clarke can tell that he's been running about the camp trying to set things right.

 

“Okay, who's the jerk?” he snarks, folding his arms across his chest and standing protectively behind Clarke. He's not about to let some millionaire stroll in and disrupt all their hard work.

 

“Uh, this is Dr Bellamy...”

 

“Dr Blake.” Bellamy cuts in, brow still furrowed. 

 

“Dr Blake. Bellamy, this is Mr. Jaha. Thelonius Jaha.”

 

He splutters. “Did I say jerk? I er...”

 

Jaha shrugs, apologetically. “Uh, I must apologise for the dramatic entrance, but I'm in rather a hurry.” he pulls open the cupboard and takes out three mugs and pours them each a measure of the champagne. He hands them each one of the cracked mugs and gestures for them to take a seat. “Come on, both of you. Sit down. We've got a lot to discuss and not much time to discuss it.”

 

They each take a perch against one of the wooden benches, shooting each other puzzled glances.

 

“Well now, I'll get right to the point, no point beating around the bush. I like you. Both of you. You've done an excellent job here.” he pauses. “Down to the reason for my visit, I own an island – it's just off the coast of Costa Rica. I leased it from the government some years ago and my team and I have spent the last five years setting up a kind of biological preserve down there. It's really rather spectacular. We've spared no expense.” He chuckles before continuing, “It makes the one I had in Kenya look like a petting zoo. But I have no doubt that sooner or later our attractions will blow kids minds.”

 

“And what might those be exactly?” Clarke asks, wondering what on earth he could have that would make a lion look like a bunny rabbit.

 

He ignores the question, waving his hand in the air to dismiss it. “Not just kids but it's for everyone. We're going to open next year, unless the lawyers kill me first. I don't care for lawyers. Do you?”

 

At first Clarke thinks it's rhetorical but he raises and eyebrow expectantly. “I, uh, don't really know any.”

 

“Well, I'm afraid I do. There's one, a particular pebble in my shoe at the moment. He represents my investors. He says they _insist_ on outside opinions before they can fully endorse my park.”

 

“What kind of opinions?” Bellamy presses, arms folded across his chest.

 

“Not to put too fine a point on it, but your kind. Let's face it, in your respective fields, you're the top minds. If...if I could just get you two to sign off on the park, maybe write a short testimonial or two, then I could get back on track.”

 

“No disrespect, sir, but why would they care what we think?” Clarke takes a sip from his chipped mug. “We specialise in dead animals not live ones.”

 

Bellamy nods, “What kind of park is it?”

 

“Well, as it happens it's right up your alley. Look, why don't you both come on down for the weekend. We would just love to have the opinion of one of your students as well. I've got a jet standing by as we speak.”

 

“No, I'm sorry, but that wouldn't be possible for us right now. We've just discovered a new skeleton, and –”

 

“And I've got to take care of my sister, I'm her guardian, she's only fourteen so I can't leave her here unattended.”

 

“Naturally she can come as well, she's the target audience after all, and I could compensate you all by say fully funding your dig.”

 

Clarke shuffles from one foot to the other, tempted. “Sir, this would be an awfully unusual time –”

 

“For a further three years.” he interjects, reaching into his jacket pocket and pulling out a battered cheque book.

 

Bellamy looks like he's about to protest, so Clarke sends a sharp elbow into his ribs because they're really not in a position where they can turn down funding. He coughs, jabbing her back with his finger whilst Jaha begins to fill in his cheque. “We'd be delighted sir.” he bites out. “So, um, where's the plane?”

 


	2. ELECTRIFIED FENCE! 10,000 VOLTS!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was freshly motivated and inspired by Jurassic World - which, coincidentally, would make a fantastic Bellarke Au - but I've been busy with work and have only just gotten around to finishing off this second chapter. I hope you enjoy this #raptorsforlife

Soon enough Clarke finds herself sandwiched between the Blake siblings on a helicopter skimming low over the pacific. It's a far cry from the dusty surroundings of the bad lands and she has to admit that the air conditioning is a welcome change.

The trip so far had been arduous at best, Octavia was constantly grumbling in the corner and Jasper's rambling enthusiastically to Bellamy about how pleased he was that they'd chosen him to accompany them on their trip. The truth was he was the only student that they could both stand who was actually willing to accompany the two professors half way across the country. His enthusiasm for their research and his inability to keep still seemed like the perfect combination for a jaunt to a wildlife preserve headed by an eccentric millionaire.

Sat opposite her, near the window, is Dr Raven Reyes. She's dressed all in black with sunglasses framing her face, making Clarke feel under dressed in her button up khaki shorts, and so far Raven's kept quiet kind of like she's figuring out the lie of the land. Next to her is Mr Collins – the lawyer and metaphorical thorn in Jaha's side. He looks like he's dressed for a safari and keeps shuffling in his seat and cursing under his breath which suggests to Clarke that he's not a fan of heights. It because of this that she feels as though she has to nudge Bellamy to stop him sniggering at the other man's knee high socks, feeling sorry for the man who quite clearly doesn't want to be there.

Raven glances at her watch, lifting up her glasses. “So,” she begins, having to raise her voice over the noise of the engine. “You two dig up dinosaurs for a living, right?”

“We try our best, yes. But there's a lot more to it than just digging. Actually –”

“Save it Bell, she's just being polite.” Octavia snarks. “No one cares about your stupid fossils.”

Bellamy has trouble masking the hurt written across his face . “Actually, we spend just as much of our time in the lab analysing our samples.”

He ignores his sister when she starts to snore.

Raven laughs, apparently finding the whole exchange very amusing and seems to decide that they're worth pursuing a conversation with. Even though she'd started out reserved, Raven soon comes to life when Bellamy asks her what she does and after about ten minutes of animated chat about mechanics, Jaha turns around, clearly annoyed.

“You'll have to get use to Dr. Reyes! She suffers from a deplorable excess of enthusiasm, especially for a mechanic!”

“Chaotician, actually, although I did dabble in mechanics when I was younger.” she elects to rolls her eyes when Jaha snorts. “Thelonius doesn't subscribe to Chaos, particularly what it has to say about his little science project.”

Clarke frowns. “You still haven't actually told us what exactly it is you have at your park.”

Raven rolls her eyes and even Collins pulls a face at this.

“Maybe I would if you'd ever come close to explaining these concerns of yours about this island!” As Clarke expects, he pointedly ignores her question.

“I certainly have. Very clearly. On many occasions.” she scoffs. “Because of the behaviour of the system in phase space!”

Jaha just waves her off. “Just a load, if I may say so, of fashionable number crunching, that¹s all it is!”

“Dr. Blake, Dr. Griffin – you've heard of Chaos Theory?”

“No.” Clarke shrugs as Jasper nods and Bellamy raises a speculative eyebrow.

“No? Non-linear equations? Strange attractions, maybe?” she shrugs glancing between them, eyebrow raised suggestively. Clarke tries not to squirm under Raven's gaze, not wanting to encourage her suggestion. “Hmm, somehow I find that hard to believe.”

Feeling the heat of a blush on her cheeks, Clarke's tries to jumble together some sort of denial.

“I, um, well...” Is what world renowned Dr Griffin manages to spit out just as Jaha claps his hands and points to the west of the chopper.

“There it is!”

All of the other occupants look up ahead and the small island comes into view. It's circled by a ring of grey clouds but from their vantage point the lush green of the trees can still be seen. The pilot mutters something about wind shears and the chopper begins a fast descent towards the island.

Bellamy can feel his stomach rolling as the helicopter suddenly jolts downwards and curves dangerously close to the cliff face to their left. It feels as though they're being thrown between air pockets and everyone, bar Jaha, seems to have turned a fetching shade of green.

“We're planning on building an airstrip if all goes to plan. My architects have drawn up some sketches and we've decided on pilings, extending out into the ocean.” He looks around expectantly but the others are too busy clinging to their seats to throw together even a sarcastic response.

They're nearing the ground when a landing pad comes into view below them and Clarke can see the relief written across everyone's faces.

As it happens, the landing isn't much better than the journey itself, the helicopter landing with a thud and throwing its passengers forwards as two large open top Jeeps race down the hillside. They wait until the rotor blades have stopped spinning and then Octavia thrusts open the door, nearly slamming it into a park workers face as he scrambled to open the door for the visitors.

Once they've all disembarked – and Bellamy is feeling less delicate – Jaha herds them all towards the cars, gesturing proudly towards the rest of the island as his guests file into the awaiting Jeeps. Clarke and Raven pile into the first Jeep, Bellamy and Octavia squashing themselves into the remaining seats, while Jasper draws the short straw and has to join Jaha and Collins in the second.

They drive for about five minutes down a dirt track before an enormous gate comes into view, surrounded by a fence that must reach at least twenty five feet in it's lowest points. The Jeeps have to stop while the drivers flash their ID cards at a park attendant who they dutifully opens the gates and allows the cars passage into the main compound of the park. The fences themselves are covered in electrical insulators and every hundred yards or so is a large sign warning that the fence is heavily electrified, only adding to the mystery surrounding the nature of the park.

In the rear car, Collins regards the fences critically before raising a sceptical eyebrow towards Mr Jaha. “The full fifty miles of perimeter fencing are in place?”

Jaha rolls his eyes impatiently. “And the concrete moats, and the motion sensor tracking systems. Finn, my dear boy, do try to relax and enjoy yourself, stop worrying about everything. We have it all under control here.”

“Let's get something straight, Thelonious, this is not some kind of weekend excursion, this is a serious investigation into the stability of your island. May I remind you that your investors, whom I represent, are deeply concerned and rightly so. Forty eight hours from now, if they –” he gestures towards the vehicle housing Blake, Griffin and Reyes – “aren't convinced, then neither am I and neither are your investors. I'll shut you down.”

“Forty-eight hours from now, I'll be accepting your apologies.” he scoffs. “Now get out of the way. So I can see them!”

Their Jeep takes the lead as the drivers heads off road and up over the ridge of a hill. Clarke stares off to the side, enthralled by the various species of plant life around them, as Bellamy tries to cheer up his sister. As they delve further into the park, she can't help but note that there's something off, there's something distinctly unusual about some of the plants they pass, so to quell her queries she leans out and plucks a leaf from a low branch as they pass it.

Jaha, watching her, signals to the driver. “Just stop here, stop here. Slow, slow.”

He slows down, then stops as does the front Jeep.

Clarke's to busy examining the leaf in front of her to even notice that the cars have drawn to a halt. She's running her hand lightly over the veins, tracing the shape across the waxy underside of the leaf. “Bellamy –”

The chatter from the back seat has long since stopped and Bellamy is no longer paying his sister or Clarke any attention. Instead his vision is trained but of the other side of the Jeep, expression unreadable. His eyes scan the trees, seeing that most of the trunks are leafless – each just as thick as the other trees but stripped.  
  
“This...This shouldn't be here.” Clarke continues.

Bellamy doesn’t even hear her as he twists in his seat. Captivated, he unbuckles his seat belt and stands in his seat, edging closer as he watches what he thought to be another tree trunk. He looks higher. And higher. Until he realises that there is no tree trunk but a leg. His jaw drops, baffled, head lolling back as he looks above the tree line awestruck.   
  
Neither doctor has noticed the others excitement, Clarke's still muttering about the leaf and Bellamy is trying the shush Jasper as the younger man jumps out of the rear car and cottons on to what Dr Blake is seeing.

“Bellamy, this species of vermiform was been extinct since the Cretaceous period. This thing –”

Bellamy can't bear to take his eyes off the sight before him so he leans over and grabs Clarke's head, turning it.

He knows she's seen it too when the leaf falls to the floor and she's scrambling to open the door.

The brachiosaurus looms above them, tearing a branch from the very top of the tree before it. She crunches the branch in her mouth and then turns and looks down at the people in the cars at her feet.

Bellamy lets out a part of a laugh mixed with a shout of joy as he climbs over his sister and follows Clarke onto the grass. He glances over to her once, making sure she can see it too – that he's not crazy. “That's a dinosaur.”

Clarke looks up at the sauropod in wonder. “I know.”

“Look how light she is on her feet.” Jasper nudges Octavia and even though she's trying to look disinterested, there's a look in her eyes that shows just how fascinated she really is. “Not at all sluggish, like we would have expected.”

Jaha gets out of the second Jeep and comes back to join them, Raven and Collins trailing behind him. Clarke thinks that he looks like a proud parent showing off his kid and in a way, she guesses, he kind of is.

Raven looks at Jaha, utterly amazed. Her face is a mixture of admiration and rapprochement, almost as if she can't decide if he's a genius or a psychopath – maybe both. Definitely both.  
  
“You did it.” Raven muses, slapping Jaha on the shoulder. “You crazy son of a bitch, you actually did it.”

Bellamy and Clarke continue walking, following the dinosaur and examining her every movement.

“The movement!” Bellamy marvels.

“You're right,” Clarke muses. “The agility really is something else.”   
  
In their amazement, Bellamy and Clarke talk right over each other, arms flying widely as they speak, excitement shining in both of their eyes.

“Clarke, this just proves that we can tear up the rule book on cold-bloodedness. It simply doesn't apply, they're totally wrong! This is a warm-blooded creature.” She doesn’t have to look at him to know that he's grinning ear too ear, she can hear the smile in his voice as he watches.

There's a movement to their right and more branches are being ripped away from a conifer, another sauropod is standing on her hind legs to reach the high branches and Bellamy whirls around, amazed, striding towards Jaha.

“That thing's got a what, twenty five, maybe twenty seven foot neck?” he asks.

“The brachiosaur?” the older man smiles. “Thirty.”

“And you're going to sit there and try to tell me it can push blood up a thirty foot neck without a four chambered heart and still manage to get around like that?! Like that!?” he turns to Clarke and sees the excitement brimming in her, too.

Jasper calls over to them. “This is like a knock-out punch for warm bloodedness.”

Jaha puts an arm around Bellamy. “You know, we clocked the T-Rex at thirty-two miles an hour.”

“You...y...you've got a T-Rex?!” Clarke asks, jaw dropping. “Bell, did you hear that? He's got a T-Rex! A T-Rex! He said he's –”

“I know I heard. But can you maybe say it again? Just so I can be sure – absolutely sure – that I heard you right.”

“Yes, we have a T-Rex.” Jaha beams, smug expression sliding onto his face.

Bellamy sinks down onto the ground, feeling faint.

“Just put your head between your knees, and breathe.” Clarke smiles, dropping down to sit next to him on the grass.

Jaha walks in front of them and looks out. The group turn and look out at the view again. The scene around them is not unlike an African plain as whole herds of differently sized dinosaurs travel across the plain, heading towards a lake at the base of the valley.

“Clarke, they're absolutely – they're moving in herds. They do move in herds!”

She smiles back at him, rubbing his back. “We were right!”

“How did you do it?” Jasper asks, coming up to stand just behind Jaha.

“Yeah, uh, how did you do it?” Octavia pipes from her position, still seated in the back of the Jeep.

“If you'd all like to return to the cars, I'll be happy to show you around.” Jaha says, hoping back into his Jeep. “Dr. Blake, my dear Dr. Griffin. Welcome to Jurassic Park.”


	3. Dino DNA

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait between chapters but I've been busy with my jobs recently and I haven't had much inspiration. Naturally this lead me to have to go and see Jurassic World again (you can imagine how hard this was for me ;)) to make sure that I was sufficiently excited to finish this chapter.
> 
> It's a bit of a slow one, mostly just a filler before most of the action but it's kind of necessary to set the scene for the rest of the story.

As the Jeeps pull up towards the main expanse of the park, three distinct buildings come into view all of which are connected by a series of walkways. The largest, and arguably most impressive, of the buildings is the visitor centre. Jaha takes much pride in explaining to them how the building consists of several stories and, once finished, would hold more of the state of the art resources that he would spare no expense to install – once Collins had approved the park to his investors, of course. All of the inner compound is surrounded by two large fences, which look as though they're designed to keep something very large out of the visitors area of the park.

 

The second building is almost hidden behind the first and looks to be a private residence of some sort if the rows of balconies are anything to go by. It's almost a compound in itself, with its own perimeter fence, and Jaha explains that some of the staff wanted a little more security as far as their living quarters were concerned. The bars across the windows don't do much to reassure the group of the safety of the park but no one, bar Octavia, has the heart to say anything.

 

“So are the bars to keep your employees in or the dinosaurs out?” she snorts, avoiding her brothers sigh as their host looks flustered before continuing.

 

The last building, on closer inspection, is less of a building and more of a paddock. The metal structure makes the overgrown foliage inside the cage pale in comparison and Bellamy can't help but wonder what's being kept in there. Half a dozen men in khaki are scattered around the structure and seem to be patrolling the area if the rifles slung over their backs are any indicator but given his knowledge on the subject, Bellamy doesn't think that the amount of space could be at all humane for an animal that would need multiple firearms to keep them at bay.

 

Much to Clarke's delight, however, she notices that in the area outside of the fences, the jungle has been left to its own devices and has been allowed to grow naturally, with a wide variety of extinct plants mixed in amongst contemporary foliage. Bellamy seems to sense her excitement as she rests her hand lightly on his forearm to attract his attention and he can't help but smile to himself about the way her eyes seem to sparkle with joy as she takes in their surroundings. She makes a mental note to explore that part of the park later on once their tour has finished and she actually has time to process what it is that's going on here and she thinks that there could be worse people to accompany her than Dr Blake.

 

The cars come to a halt outside the visitor centre and once everyone has exited the vehicles Jaha ushers over one of the park staff and asks them to show Octavia and Jasper to their rooms so they can settle in whilst he shows the 'adults' the rest of the park but the pair refuse, much to the chagrin of the older man, insisting that they weren't going to be palmed off and miss out on the rest of the tour. (Jasper, of course, was more adamant than Octavia about missing out on the science but she wasn't going to be left behind either to – as she so eloquently put it – rot away behind bars.) With the sigh of a man clearly not used to teenagers, Jaha then proceeded to usher them and Bellamy, Clarke, Raven and Finn up the stairs and into the Visitor Centre.

 

The lobby is also unfinished, much like the outside of the building, but the high ceiling and skylight let the natural light filter down to illuminate the central feature housed within the centre. Jaha beams proudly as Bellamy rushes over and puts a hand on the thigh bone of the tyrannosaur skeleton that's suspended in the middle of the room, frozen in combat with a triceratops. He turns to call Clarke over but she's already marvelling over the crest of the triceratops skeleton, running her hand over the frills. Even Octavia, to her credit, looks a little impressed.

 

Jasper and Raven also make their way over to the skeletons, but Jasper is soon bounding off across the room to check out some of the other exhibits. A few workmen are assembling more skeletons on various levels of the centre and Jasper makes his way between them, trying to take pictures of everything. Despite the angry shouts of the workmen as he nearly topples a skeleton in his excitement, he nearly backs into another unfinished fixture before Clarke shouts him over before he can do any real damage. They need to do this for their dig, they can't afford to replace anything their excitable assistant might break.

 

Octavia rolls her eyes at one of the Compsognathus skeletons. “That one isn't even overgrown it's just a turkey.”

 

“O shut it, please.” Bellamy scolds, elbowing his sister.

 

It seems as though Jaha has already become adept to ignoring the complaints of the younger Blake as he turns to Clarke and continues to enthuse about the inner workings of his park. “I've been assured that we're making the most advanced park in the world – no-one else even comes close to us. We've been combining all of the latest technologies to make sure we have anything and everything our guests could need. And I’m not just talking about rides, you know –” at this point he turns his attention to Collins. “Anybody can have rides and everybody does but we, _we_ have made living biological attractions that are really going to astound the whole planet.”

 

Bellamy stares up at the dinosaur skeletons and just shakes his head, resigned.

 

Clarke catches his reaction and puts a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Hey, Dr Blake, what's on your mind?”

 

He sighs. “Nothing much... I just can't help thinking that we might just be out of a job.”

 

Before Clarke can formulate a reply, Raven squeezes in between them. “Don't you mean _extinct_?”

 

No-one really finds it all that funny.

 

\---

 

Jaha leads the group into a small auditorium and gestures for them to take their seats in the front row. Collins opts for the row behind them and pulls out a note pad from his breast pocket, looking ready to take notes. He seems the sort to be overly critical, the man just oozes an air of self-righteousness that has already begun to sub up the other guests the wrong way. Once all of his guests are seated, Jaha makes his way over to the large screen in front of them.

 

Behind him, on the screen, a huge image of himself appears and beams down at his real life self. He pulls out some flash cards from his blazer pocket and gestures towards the back of the theatre. The lights go down and a crackle blares out of the speakers next to the stage.

 

The version on Thelonious Jaha on the screen peers down again and smiles. “Hello, Thelonious!”

 

Jaha fumbles with his cards, seemingly mixing them up even more as he does so. “Oh, I've got lines.” he mumbles, scanning his cue cards looking for his place. The screen Jaha continues without him, a nonsensical diatribe without the second half of the conversation. Bellamy shoots Clarke a raised eyebrow at this point, neither scientist seeing the point to the charade in front of them. 

 

Eventually, though, Jaha finds his place just in time to extend his finger for his screen counterpart to take a blood sample. Jaha feigns injury but is reassured by his twin that it is all part of the miracle of cloning and, as if to prove his point, seven other copies of the founder of the park appear and start to chatter between themselves.

 

“Cloning from what? As far as I'm aware, Loy extraction hasn't yielded any intact strands of DNA.” Bellamy questions, leaning forward in his seat.

 

Raven nods along with him. “At least not without massive sequence gaps.”

 

“Paleo-DNA? From what source? Where do you get 100 million year old dinosaur blood?!” Clarke adds, mumbling.

 

It's then that a larger than life animated double helix DNA strand takes over the narrative and begins to lay down the real science behind the park. He floats across the screen until he appears to sit on Jaha's shoulder.

 

“Well! Mr. DNA! Where'd you come from?” Jaha exclaims. Then as an aside, “We thought the animation would be more appealing to the kids.”

 

“From your blood! Just one drop of your blood contains billions of strands of DNA.” he proclaims in a deep southern accent as more strands of DNA run across the screen as the narration continues. “A DNA strand like me is a blueprint for building a living thing and sometimes animals that went extinct, like dinosaurs, left their blueprints behind for our scientists to find.”

 

“A hundred million years ago, there were mosquitoes, just like today. And, just like today, they fed on the blood of animals. Even dinosaurs!” The image changes from the animation to, what looks like, stock footage from a nature documentary. A close up of a feeding mosquito, fangs suck the deep into some animals flesh, is shown until the camera zooms out and the animal is revealed to be a brachiosaur. Then the image changes again, this one of a tree branch, its bark glistening with golden sap. “Sometimes, after biting a dinosaur, the mosquito would land on a branch of a tree, and get stuck in the sap. After a long time, the tree sap would get hard and become fossilized, just like a dinosaur bone, preserving the mosquito inside!”

 

A laboratory is then displayed on the screen and the whole room buzzes with activity. Scattered around the room are piles of amber – all in various sizes and shapes – each labelled with scientists examining certain specimens underneath their microscopes. The camera pans over and one of the scientists moves a drill next to a large chunk of amber and bores into the side of it to reveal the mosquito inside.

 

Mr DNA appears again in the corner of the screen. “This fossilized tree sap – which we call amber has waited millions of years, with the mosquito trapped inside – until Jurassic Park's scientists came along and realised its potential. Using sophisticated techniques, they can extract the preserved blood from the mosquito and can find dinosaur DNA!”

 

He then goes on to explain about genetic coding and how the gaps in the strands that have to be filled with amphibian DNA in order to create the dinosaurs that live throughout the park. It's also mentioned that this does mean there could some slight aesthetic differences from the creatures from the past but this is the only way that a baby dinosaur can be created.

 

The scientists exchange a look with each other, not sure about the legitimacy of the process.

 

Jaha cuts in. “All this has some dramatic music playing in the background – da dum da dum da dum dum – ” He throws a switch and safety bars appear out of nowhere and drop over their seats, clicking into place like a theme park ride. “No need to panic, they're for your own safety.”

 

The row of seats slowly begin to move out of the auditorium.

 

“This has to be the lamest ride ever.” Octavia grumbles, pulling out her phone.

 


	4. Lethal at eight months.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly, I'm sorry it took so long for this update but I'm kind of losing interest in writing this as I've had some other ideas that I want to try out so I can't promise updates will be all that regular. But, fear not, I won't give up with this story but it may have to take a back seat for a while.
> 
> This one is quite Raven-centric in places and not much action happens as the scene is still being set. Hopefully next chapter will be the start of the action and we'll start to see more relationships develop as well.
> 
> I don't have a beta so all my mistakes are mine.  
> Thanks.

The row of seats begin to move slowly past a window of glass, a sign reading 'Fertilization and Hatchery' sitting above the pane. Behind the glass a large white room opens up and reveals a lab not dissimilar to the one they'd seen in the video moments before. The back section of the lab is lit, almost entirely, by ultraviolet light leading into a separate room full of large glass tubes. Men and women are scattered about the room, working on various tasks and it soon becomes clear to the guests that these are real employees of the park when one of the technicians raises a hand to wave at Jaha.

“Our fertilization department is where the dinosaur DNA gets placed inside an unfertilized egg – either that of an ostrich or of an emu – and then it moves over to the nursery, where our baby dinosaurs take their first steps on earth for millions of years.” the Mr DNA voice over continues.

Collins has sat up in his seat, now, and has a wondrous grin plastered across his face, just drinking everything in. “This truly is overwhelming, Thelonious. I don't know how you've managed to pull this off, I really don't.

However, before any of the group can get a good look inside the room, the seats start to move again and the commentary continues. 

“Wait a minute!” Bellamy yelps, straining against his safety bars to try and get a better look.

“Can't we see the unfertilized host eggs?” Clarke asks, clamouring to see further into the room.

But the cars are already moving on to another set of windows, which give a glimpse into what looks like a control room. Panels are full of flashing lights and screens but no-one seems to pay any attention to this room, most of the guests preferring to stay and explore the fertilization department. 

“Shortly, shortly...all in good time.” Jaha mutters.

“Our control room contains some of the most sophisticated automation ever attempted in –” the voice over continues and the seats show no intention of slowing down to allow the scientists a better look.

“Can't you stop these things?!” Bellamy sighs, trying to push his way out of his seat to no avail.

Jaha shakes his head, “Sorry, but it's kind of a ride. I can't just stop it whenever I want...”

Shaking his head, Bellamy turns to Clarke and Raven. “Come on, let's get out of here.”

Raven hooks her boots up against the bar and gestures for the other two to follow suit and the three of them team up on the safety bars, all using their feet to shove them off their laps with an unhealthy crack of metal. Jasper and Octavia exchange a look before doing the same to their section of seats, not wanting to get left behind, and then follow the others heading for the door of the hatchery.

“Hey! You can't do that!” Collins scowls from his seat but frankly it comes too late as Raven shrugs, pushing open the door with a challenging look sent in the lawyers direction.

“Try and stop me.” she calls over her shoulder, ponytail swinging behind her as she disappears through the frame.

She doesn't get all that far, though, as the next door is secured with a key card system. For a second it looks like she's considering kicking the door down but she stands down as soon as their host reaches the door.

Jaha smiles as Collins asks him if they can do that, incredulous.

“Relax, Finn, relax. They're scientists, it would be unusual if they weren't curious.” He smiles easily and steps up to the control box, holding his card against the machine to grant the group of scientists access to the lab. 

Long tables run the length of the lab against the back wall, all covered with eggs, each in a small incubator each full of foliage, nurturing the eggs. 

Jaha strides in ahead of Bellamy and Clarke and ushers the rest of the group over to a table near to the centre of the room. One of the team, a young Asian man, wearing a pristine lab coat looks up from his notes as the group approach him, smiling, and Clarke recognises him as the technician who had waved at them earlier in the tour. 

“Good afternoon, Monty.” Jaha smiles, patting the shorter man on the back. “I'm pleased to introduce Dr Monty Green, our head geneticist.” 

“Oh, good day, Sir.” he smiles, waving a hand to the rest of the group. “These must be the guests you were telling me about. Welcome.”

Bellamy walks behind them, moving around the table, to take a look at a cluster of eggs underneath a strong light. He's startled momentarily when one of the eggs jolts, watching intently as a robotic arm reaches out and steadies the egg. He gasps as the egg starts to shift side to side.

“Look!” he calls, catching Clarke's eye over the table. He beams at her as she hurries over, her eyes flashing with excitement. She's followed by Raven and Jaha but the group part to allow Dr Green to stand before the eggs. 

Monty smiles at Jaha. “Perfect timing, sir. I'm so glad they hatched before I had to get the boat.” “Why didn't you tell me? You know I insist on being here when they're born.” Jaha looks excited, pulling on a pair of plastic gloves.

The egg shakes again and Clarke catches Bellamy's eye, both beaming at each other as her hand finds his arm. The robotic arm recedes as the egg begins to crack. 

E ventually, the top of the egg falls away and a baby dinosaur is revealed, head emerging from the shell as it tries to get out. Jaha reaches down and gently breaks away a few more fragments of shell, helping the dinosaur out of it's home.

“Come on, then, out you come.” he coaxes, smiling down at the infant in a somewhat fatherly way. “They imprint on the first living creature they come into contact with, you know, like birds. That helps them to trust me. I've been present for the birth of _every_ animal on this Island.”

Raven quirks an eyebrow, “Surely not the ones that have bred in the wild?”

Monty smiles, noting down some details on his clipboard. “Actually, they can't breed in the wild. Population control is one of our security precautions here and we take that very seriously. There is no unauthorized breeding in Jurassic Park.”

Bellamy and Clarke exchange a look and she manages not to smile. Octavia just rolls her eyes.”

“How do you know they can't breed?” Raven asks. “Have you...you know –”

“Because all the animals in Jurassic Park are females. We've engineered them that way.” Monty replies.

At this, Octavia actually looks rather impressed and she turns to the baby dinosaur, nodding at her in respect. She wouldn't admit it but Octavia was beginning to think that this trip wasn't going to be as boring as she had once thought.

Jaha reaches out for a tissue and then lifts the infant, freeing her from her shell. He sets her down carefully as Bellamy picks up a shard of the shell, holding it up underneath the the light. The robot arm snakes out and snatches it back, placing it back down. 

Clarke reaches out, “May I?” Monty nods and she lifts the baby up in the palm of her hand. “Blood temperature feels like it's in the eighties.” she mumbles, placing the baby back down next to her shell.

“Her blood temperature feels like it could be somewhere in the high eighties, maybe?” Clarke smiles, glancing over to Dr Green.

“Ninety-one, actually.”

Raven looks at Jaha and Green sceptically, eyebrow raised. “But how do you know that they're all females? I hate to be crass but does someone, like, go out into the park and um check?”

Monty smiles, flipping through his clipboard, and presents Raven with a few charts. “We control their chromosomes and since all embryos start out as female anyway, it's not that difficult for us to make sure the stay that way. All it takes is an extra hormone to be introduced at the right developmental stage for the embryo to be male and we simply deny them that.”

Ethical issues aside, no-one could deny that this seemed like the best way to keep the park safe. Except Raven. 

“But the kind of control that you're attempting just isn't possible.” she frowns, eyes flicking across various charts and graphs. “If there's one thing that evolution should have taught us, it's that life will not be contained, cannot be controlled. Life breaks free, however dangerous and painful it may be.”

“Ms Reyes, are you're implying that a group composed entirely of females will breed?” Monty asks, incredulous. 

She shrugs, “All I'm simply saying is that life finds a way. You can't expect anything less.”

Octavia forces her way between the scientists and extends her hand out towards the baby dinosaur. “'You can't control anything' I agree with that.” she shoots a pointed look in her brothers direction. “Yeah, that's definitely something that I could get behind.”

Bellamy ignores his sister in favour of crouching before the infant, a strange look on his face. Whilst the others had been arguing over genetics and control, he'd been trying to place why the familiarity that came with the baby dinosaur. He stops, suddenly, hand half way towards the dinosaur, and his gaze turns stormy. He thinks his assumption is right but he hopes that if he asks, he won't get the answer he's dreading. “Uh, Dr Green, what species is this?”

“She's a Velociraptor.” 

Bellamy turns to look first at Clarke and then at Jaha, astonished. “You...you bred raptors? Are you insane?”

\---

Bellamy charges across the compound, a fire burning in his eyes, Clarke hot on his heels. As soon as he'd heard that Jurassic Park was the home to raptors he'd demanded to know where they were and had practically ran out of the visitor centre and towards the pen. He curses at himself fr not realising sooner as the fortified paddock from earlier comes into view, guards still on patrol walking it's perimeter.

Jasper follows him, fear now replacing the excitement in his eyes and the boy knows better than to question his professor as he mutters profanities under his breath.

“Dr Blake, slow down.” Jaha calls, struggling to keep up with the pace set by the younger man. “We had planned to sow you the raptors after we'd had lunch.”

Bellamy ignores him and comes to an abrupt stop next to the paddock. He stands right up against the fences, peering in with wide eyes, dying for a glimpse of the animals inside. He's framed by Clarke and Octavia as they stand on either side of him, he tries to put himself between his sister and the cage but she stands firm, trying to spy the animals inside.

“As I was saying, we've laid out lunch for you before you head out into the park if you'd care to join me –”

“What are they doing?” Jasper asks, gesturing towards a commotion on the opposite side of the paddock.

As they watch, a huge crane lowers a cow down into the middle of the foliage. She looks helpless as she dangles above the cage in her harness, legs flailing in the air trying to find a purchase but finding nothing but air beneath her. The group can hear her mournful brays echoing as she descends into the jungle and what's happening soon becomes apparent. 

“Feeding them.” Jaha mutters. “Speaking of, I believe I mentioned something about lunch.”

Bellamy strides over to the viewing deck, taking two steps at a time as he bounds up the stairs. The rest of the group follows him, watching as the cow disappears. 

The jungle below them quiets, silence filling the air. Their eyes are glued to the motionless crane line. Leaves rustle in the distance but still quickly. The line jerks suddenly, causing everybody watching to jump. Then there's a brief pause.

Then a frenzy. The line jerks every way, plants swinging and snapping from the frantic activity. A series of low growls erupt from the trees and then there's a sickening snap and the plants still once more. 

Clarke can't help but think that it's worse that they can't see what's happening, imaginations running wild. She thinks that hearing the sounds of the cow being torn apart were far more terrifying than witnessing the attack itself, her brain filling in the gaps with horrifying images which makes her incredibly thankful about the thick fence in front of her and the fact that the raptors have just eaten.

“Fascinating animals, fascinating.” Jaha beams as the sounds of the jungle start up again, birds chirping and flitting between the trees.

“Oh my God.” Raven breaths. “Esto no puede terminar bien.”

“Give them time, and we believe they'll out perform the T-Rex. Guarantee it.” Jaha smiles.

The crease in his brow is still visible when Bellamy turns. “I want to see them. Is there any way that we can we get closer?”

Clarke puts a hand on his arm, like calming an overexcited child. She can't tell if he's excited or terrified but she's not sure which she is either. “These certainly aren't bones anymore.” she mumbles.

“We're still perfecting a viewing system at the moment.” Jaha explains. “The raptors seem to, uh, be a bit resistant to integration into a park setting.”

“They should all be destroyed.” 

They all turn and look at the man who spoke. The man is tall and dressed all in khaki with – what looks like – an elephant gun slung over his shoulder and a knife holstered in his belt. He walks over and joins the group, pulling off his hat.

“Nathan. Nathan Miller, my game warden I've brought in from my resort in Kenya. He's the best there is but he's a bit of an alarmist, I'm afraid, but he's dealt with the raptors more than anyone.”

Bellamy nods at the man and extends a hand. “Dr Bellamy Blake, pleased to meet you. So tell me, what kind of metabolism do they have? What's their growth rate?”

“They're lethal at eight months. And, trust me, I do lethal. I've hunted almost everything that can hunt you, but the way these things move –” he shudders, running a hand at the base of his neck.

“Fast for biped?”

“Absolutely. Cheetah speed. Fifty, sixty miles per hour if, god forbid, they ever got out in the open. And they're astonishing jumpers.”

Jaha waves a dismissive hand. “Yes, yes, yes, which is why we take extreme precautions. The viewing area below us will have eight-inch tempered glass set in reinforced steel frames to –”

“Do they show intelligence? With the brain cavity like theirs we assumed –"

Miller cuts him off. “You can't assume anything with these creatures. They show extreme intelligence, even problem solving.” he peers into the jungle. “Especially the big one. We'd bred eight originally, but when she came in, she took over the pride and killed all but two of her sisters. That one...when she looks at you, you can see she's thinking, working things out. She's the reason we have to feed 'em like this. She had them all attacking the fences when the feeders came.” he shakes his head.

“But the fences are all electrified, right?” Clarke asks.

“That's right.” Jaha nods.

“But they never attack the same place twice. They were testing the fences for weaknesses. Systematically. They remembered.” Miller frowns.

Behind them, the crane whirs back to life, raising the cable back up out of the raptor pen. The guests turn and stare as the end portion of the cable becomes visible, there's absolutely nothing left of the cow just a tattered and bloody harness swinging in the breeze.  

   \---

Jaha eventually managed to wrangle his visitors away from the raptors and back into the visitors centre and into the restaurant, seating them around a circular table. Even though there's a large buffet table running through the middle of the room, which staff members of staff pick at for their lunch, two waiters serve the group, bringing out plates and plates of food.

The room is darkened enough so that Jaha can display a selection of slides whilst they eat, pictures of all the exhibits flash up as Jaha chatters excitedly about whatever has appeared on the slide. Some of the slides are simple artists renderings, not having been completed yet, whilst others are stills from around the park itself.

“Not all of these attractions have been finished yet but the park will open with the basic tour you're about to take, and then other rides will come on line after six or twelve months. Absolutely spectacular designs, we've got state of the art designers working on them. Spared no expense.”

Collins grins as a few more slides pass. “And we can charge anything we want! Two thousand a day, ten thousand a day – and people will pay it! And then there's the merchandising –”

“Finn, this park was not built to carter only to the super rich. Everyone in the world's got a right to enjoy these animals, regardless of income.”

“Sure, they will, they will.” Collins laughs. “We'll have a coupon day or something.”

Clarke looks down at the plate she's been given, noting that it takes he shape of the island itself. He drinking cup has a T-Rex across is above a flashy Jurassic Park logo. She's never been a huge fan of capitalism like this but if it's going to fund their dig then she supposes she might as well exploit the system a little too.

There are a stack of folded amusement park-style maps on the table in front of Jasper. He picks one up. Boldly, across the top it says, 'Fly United to Jurassic Park!'. Admittedly, it looks impressive but he soon puts it back down when the numbers start to fly out of Jaha and Collins it leaves a bad taste in the boys mouth.

“From combined revenue streams for all three parks should reach eight to nine billion dollars a year.” Jaha croons, changing the slide. He then turns to Collins, “That's conservative, of course.”

“I've never been a rich man. I hear it's nice. Is it nice?” Clarke can see the dollar signs in his eyes again as he stabs a piece of carrot with his fork and brings it to his mouth.

Raven snorts with contempt, signalling that she's finally had enough. “The lack of humility that's been displayed here staggers me.”

They all turn and look at her, Collins in particular sending a disparaging look in her direction.

“Thank you, Dr. Reyes, but I think things are a little different than you and I feared.”

“Idiota.” she mumbles under her breath, Octavia is pretty sure that she's the only one who hears. “Yes, I know. They're a lot, lot worse than I first thought.”

“Now, wait a second Ms Reyes, we –” Collins begins.

“Dr Reyes actually, if you don't mind.” 

He doesn't amend himself before continuing. “We haven't even seen the park yet. Let's just take the time to evaluate our concerns before we skip straight to a judgement. This is an on site inspection so I suggest you do your job before jumping to rash conclusions.”

“Alright Finn, alright, but just let her talk. I brought you all here because I want to hear all of our viewpoints.” he looks over to Jasper and Octavia who have been chatting quietly in the corner up until now. “I truly do.”

“Don't you see the danger, inherent in what you're doing here with this park? Genetic power is, quite frankly, the most awesome force ever seen on this planet. But you're choosing to wield it like a kid who's found his dad's gun.”

“If I may...It is hardly appropriate to start hurling accusations –”

Raven simply ignores Collins and carries on. “The problem with the scientific power that you've used is it didn't require any discipline to attain it for yourselves. You read what others had done in the past and you took the next step. As far as I can see, you didn't earn the knowledge yourselves, so you don't take the responsibility for it either. You stood on the shoulder of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you knew what you had, you patented it and packaged it, slapped in on a plastic lunch box, and now you want to sell it.”

“Dr Reyes, you don't give us our due credit. Our scientists have done things no one could ever do before, that no-one would dare to do.”

She snorts again. “Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they _could_ that they didn't stop to think if they _should_.” Her hands are flying wildly, almost in time with her words. “Science can create pesticides, but what it can't do is tell us that we shouldn't use them. Science can make a nuclear reactor, but it can't tell us not to build it or what the dangers are!”

“But this is nature! Why not give an extinct species a second chance?!” Jaha questions, ending the slide show. “I mean, Condors. Condors are on the verge of extinction – if I'd created a flock of them on the island, you wouldn't be saying any of this!”

“Hold on – this is no species that was obliterated by deforestation or the building of a dam that we can take responsibility for. Dinosaurs had their shot and nature selected them for extinction.”

Jaha rolls his eyes. “I have to say, I don't understand this antagonistic attitude, especially coming from a scientist. How could we stand in the light of discovery and not act on it?”

“There's really nothing that great about discovery.”

“Please – let's hear something from the others. Dr Blake, Dr. Griffin?”

“The question is –” Clarke begins. “How much can you know about an extinct ecosystem, and therefore, how could you assume you can control it? There are plants here, in this building, that are poisonous. You picked them because they look pretty, because they're brightly coloured and draw the eye, but these are aggressive living things that have no idea what century they're living in and will defend themselves. Violently, if necessary. And I’m not just talking about the plants.”

Exasperated, Jaha turns to Bellamy, who looks shell-shocked by the whole experience. Somewhere during the exchange he's found his Velociraptor claw and he's fiddling with it, passing it between his hands.

“Dr. Blake,” Jaha tries. “If there's one person who can appreciate what I am trying to do?”

Bellamy doesn't speak for a while, he looks down at his hands before speaking. “This world...our world has just changed so radically by this that we're all running to catch up with what we've seen. I don't want to rush to any conclusions, but –” a look of concern flashes across his face. “Dinosaurs and man. Two very different species that have been separated by 65 million years and they have been thrown into the mix together for the first time so how can any of us have the faintest idea of what to expect from any of this?”

Jaha shakes his head in disbelief. “I just don't believe it. I expected you to come down here and defend me and my park from those out to discredit me and the only one I’ve got on my side is the bloodsucking lawyer?” 

Collins looks smug at this,  proud to be acknowledged without disdain for once in the day. “Thank you.”

\---

Two modified Ford Explorers roll out of an underground garage beneath the visitor's centre, Jurassic Park logos plastered on each door and a spare tyre with a matching case resting on the back. They move quietly, with a fain electronic hum unlike the other vehicles in the park, and straddle a partially buried metal rail is the middle of the road. They pull to a stop where the group is gathered and Bellamy notices there lack of drivers as the doors open.

Clarke is off to the side with Octavia, speaking the the younger girl warmly when she notices the cars. “Hey, um, Mr Jaha where are the breaks on these things?”

“Brakes? No. No, there are no brakes. They're electric cars, guided by this track in the roadway kind of like a tram, and I’m assured that they're totally non-polluting, top of the line!”

Clarke turns around and finds Octavia already half inside one of the cars. “It's an interactive DVD system. I guess that's pretty cool.”

Jaha smiles. “Look, see you just touch the right part of the screen and it talks about whatever you want, dinosaurs, exhibits or whatever else you might need. Spared no expense. Have fun everyone. I'll be watching you from control.”

“Thank you, Mr Jaha. We'll see you later on then.” Clarke waves as the older man walks up the stairs back towards the visitor centre.

There's an unspoken agreement that Clarke and Bellamy will ride together, sharing a glance before shifting to stand closer together, and Octavia seems to think that Jasper is the lesser of the remaining evils to ride with, dragging him by the sleeve towards the front Jeep. Raven exchanges an apprehensive look with Collins before the group all pile into the car.

Raven slides into the second car opting to ride with Bellamy and Clarke, threatening to punch Collins if she had to be trapped in an enclosed space with him for an extended period of time. Much to their disappointment, Jasper and Octavia finds themselves in the first car along with Collins but after one fierce glare from the younger Blake he doesn't talk all that much, leaving Octavia to largely ignore Jasper in the back seat as he babbles excitedly about the features of the park. 

\---

The control room of Jurassic Park resembles mission control before a space launch. Around the room there are several computer terminals and there are dozens of monitors some displaying different areas of the park, through security feeds, and others show the dinosaurs that are getting too close to the perimeter fences.

At the very front of the room, there's a large glass map of the island split off into sectors by dotted lines that streak across the picture. Small lights are scattered around the map, various colours lighting up the small number and code next to it, and they glow bright and strong.

The room isn't completely finished, however, there are unattached cables running across the floor and in bundles up against the walls and large sheets of metal and a couple of ladders are perched against some of the empty desks.

The desks that are set up and the technicians present give off a chaotic sort of vibe to the room as they rush around making a few last minute adjustments and running a series of security checks through the main systems of the park. Kyle Wick and John Murphy, the two lead technicians are currently working in the room, whilst a few builders mill around finishing off some electrical work in the corner, staying out of the way as much as they can. Murphy's desk is cluttered with rubbish, empty cans and packets littered across the table and he rolls his eyes any time that a builder blocks his view of one of the security monitors. Wick's desk on the other hand is completely empty save for a few bits of metal and a mug full of sharpened pencils. 

The doors burst open as Miller stalks in, rifle slung over his back and eyebrows tilted down. Jaha follows shortly behind him, humming excitedly as he takes in another part of his creation. They waste no time heading over to the main console where the blonde man is typing frantically without looking at the screen, watching one of the live feeds on a monitor across the room.

“Mr Wick, our visitors are nearly ready to head out.”

“Of course sir, I'm just running the last of the protocols now we should be good to go in five.” Wick replies, fingers still flying over the keyboard in front of him.

“I've heard word that the National Weather Service is tracking a tropical storm that's about seventy-five miles west of us.” Miller says, marching straight over to the monitor displaying the raptor enclosure.

Jaha sighs and looks over the technicians shoulder. “Why didn't I just build in Orlando like they told me?”

“I'll keep an eye on it.” Miller mumbles as a raptor flashes across the screen. “Maybe it'll swing south like the last one.”

Wick turns in his chair. “Ready to go Mr Jaha.”

Jaha takes a deep breath. “Well then, please start the tour program.”

He punches a button on the console and several of the lights on the map switch from white to green. “Hold onto your butts.”

 


End file.
